Oncolytic Virus Treatment via Gene Expression Screening
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current oncolytic virotherapy methods face challenges in predicting whether an administered virus will spread extensively within a tumor, leading to potential systemic toxicities and tumor lysis syndrome, as existing technologies lack a reliable method to identify cancer cells susceptible to viral replication before treatment.
Innovation Solution
The development of a method to identify cancer cells with a virotherapy permissive gene expression signature, characterized by low expression levels of specific gene sets, to determine the likelihood of viral replication and anticipate potential systemic toxicities, allowing for targeted administration of oncolytic viruses like VSV-IFNβ.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If oncolytic viruses are administered to treat cancer, then cancer cells are destroyed through viral replication, but systemic toxicities and tumor lysis syndrome may occur due to extensive viral spread
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by measuring the expression levels of antiviral genes (such as IFIT1, IFIT2, IFIT3, OAS1, OAS2, OAS3, and MX1) in tumor tissue before administering oncolytic viruses. This pre-treatment assessment identifies patients whose tumors have reduced antiviral gene expression, making them more susceptible to viral replication. By screening patients beforehand based on their gene expression profiles, the method predicts which patients are at risk for extensive viral spread and subsequent systemic toxicities, allowing clinicians to avoid treatment in high-risk patients or adjust dosing strategies accordingly.
2Productivity
If oncolytic viruses are administered without patient selection, then treatment may be effective for some patients, but resource waste occurs on patients unlikely to respond
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the mechanical trial-and-error approach of administering oncolytic viruses to all patients with a molecular diagnostic system. By measuring the expression levels of specific antiviral genes in tumor tissue, the invention creates a predictive biomarker system that identifies patients likely to respond to oncolytic virus therapy. This molecular assessment substitutes for empirical patient selection, enabling clinicians to predict treatment response based on gene expression profiles rather than attempting treatment on all patients and learning from outcomes.
Data Source
AI summary
This document relates to methods and materials involved in treating cancer. For example, methods and materials for using one or more oncolytic viruses (e.g., one or more replicating oncolytic viruses) to treat cancer in a mammal (e.g., a human) identified as having a cancer likely to respond to oncolytic virotherapy are provided.